Information display method and information display apparatus suitable for multi-person viewing

ABSTRACT

An information display method and an information display apparatus suitable for multi-person viewing are provided. The method is adapted to an electronic apparatus having a transparent display and a processor, and the method includes following steps: detecting a plurality of users viewing the transparent display, and calculating a gaze range of each user viewing the transparent display; calculating an intersection range of the gaze ranges of the users and determining whether a ratio of the intersection range to the gaze ranges exceeds a preset intersection ratio; displaying object information of the objects appeared in the gaze range according to each of the gaze ranges if the ratio does not exceed the preset intersection ratio; and displaying object information of the objects appeared in the gaze range according to the intersection range if the ratio exceeds the preset intersection ratio.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the priority benefit of a Taiwan applicationserial no. 107129913, filed on Aug. 28, 2018. The entirety of theabove-mentioned patent application is hereby incorporated by referenceherein.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE Field of the Disclosure

The disclosure relates to an information display method and aninformation display apparatus, and particularly relates to aninformation display method and an information display apparatus suitablefor multi-person viewing.

Description of Related Art

Transparent displays may be classified into transmission transparentdisplays and projection transparent displays according to technicalprinciples. The transmission transparent display makes a display paneltransparent, and the projection transparent display projects images ontoa reflective and transparent substrate to achieve a transparent displayeffect.

The transparent display has characteristics of transparency, lightnessand slimness, etc., which is adapted to combine virtual images displayedon the display with real-world scenes to give a viewer a visualized andintuitive interactive experience. The viewer may not only view a realobject through the transparent display, but may also view informationsuperimposed to the real object or displayed around the real objectthrough the transparent display, and even interact with the displayinformation on the transparent display through a touch technology.

The transparent displays have been widely used in applications such asautomotive head-up displays, vending machines, commodity windows, museumexhibits, sightseeing vehicles, etc. At present, most of the transparentdisplays display information independently, and the display informationis difficult to interact with the real object or the user. If multipleusers use the same transparent display, it is difficult for all of themultiple users to view the correct display information.

For example, FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of displaying information bya transparent display. Referring to FIG. 1, when a user 12 and a user 14simultaneously view an object 16 located at another side relative to theuser through a transparent display 10, by identifying relative positionsbetween the users 12, 14 and the object 16, a position where the user 12and the user 14's sight lines fall on the transparent display 10 isdetermined, so as to display object information (i.e. Kallima inachus)of the object 16 at such position. However, the repeatedly displayedobject information may easily confuse the users, and when user's sightlines are intersected, the users probably view wrong object information.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

An embodiment of the disclosure provides an information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing. The method is adapted to anelectronic apparatus having a transparent display and a processor, andthe method includes following steps: detecting a plurality of usersviewing the transparent display, and calculating a gaze range of each ofthe users viewing the transparent display; calculating an intersectionrange of the gaze ranges of the users and determining whether a ratio ofthe intersection range to the gaze ranges exceeds a preset intersectionratio; displaying object information of objects appeared in the gazerange according to each of the gaze ranges if the ratio of theintersection range to the gaze ranges does not exceed the presetintersection ratio; and displaying object information of the objectsappeared in the gaze range according to the intersection range if theratio of the intersection range to the gaze ranges exceeds the presetintersection ratio.

An embodiment of the disclosure provides an information displayapparatus including a transparent display, a first information capturingdevice, a second information capturing device and a processor. The firstinformation capturing device is configured to capture internal userinformation of users viewing the transparent display. The secondinformation capturing device is configured to capture external objectinformation at another side of the transparent display relative to theusers. The processor is coupled to the transparent display, the secondinformation capturing device and the first information capturing device,and is configured to load and execute a plurality of programinstructions to: detect the users in the internal user information, andcalculate a gaze range of each of the users viewing the transparentdisplay; calculate an intersection range of the gaze ranges of the usersand determine whether the ratio of the intersection range to the gazeranges exceeds a preset intersection ratio; display object informationof objects appeared in the gaze range according to each of the gazeranges if the ratio of the intersection range to the gaze ranges doesnot exceed the preset intersection ratio; and display object informationof the objects appeared in the gaze range according to the intersectionrange if the ratio of the intersection range to the gaze ranges exceedsthe preset intersection ratio.

In order to make the disclosure comprehensible, several exemplaryembodiments accompanied with figures are described in detail below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings are included to provide a furtherunderstanding of the disclosure, and are incorporated in and constitutea part of this specification. The drawings illustrate embodiments of thedisclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain theprinciples of the disclosure.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of displaying information by a transparentdisplay.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an information display apparatus suitablefor multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of thedisclosure.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of thedisclosure.

FIG. 5A is a flowchart illustrating an information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of thedisclosure.

FIG. 5B and FIG. 5C are examples of the information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of thedisclosure.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of thedisclosure.

FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B are examples of the information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of thedisclosure.

FIG. 8A to FIG. 8C are examples of the information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of thedisclosure.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of thedisclosure.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of thedisclosure.

FIG. 11 is an example of an information display method suitable formulti-person viewing according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 12 is an example of the information display method suitable formulti-person viewing according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

In an embodiment of the disclosure, in case that multiple people view atransparent display, gaze ranges of user's eyes are used to confirm anobject viewed by the users, and a display method and display position ofobject information are determined according to an intersection the gazeranges of the multiple users, such that the multiple users may viewcorrect object information while reducing the amount of informationdisplayed. Moreover, an embodiment of the disclosure further usestechniques of object category identification, object shapeidentification, display information shape identification, user visualrange identification, etc., such that the display information is adaptedto be viewed by a plurality of the users.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an information display apparatus suitablefor multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of the disclosure.Referring to FIG. 2, the information display apparatus 20 of theembodiment is, for example, an electronic device having a transparentdisplay function, which includes a first information capturing device21, a second information capturing device 22, a transparent display 23,a storage device 24 and a processor 25, where the first informationcapturing device 21 (for example, an internal sensing or a pointingdevice) is used for capturing internal user information, which includescapturing of user's pointing direction, and the pointing direction maybe a pointing behavior such as a user's sight line direction, a remotecontroller pointing direction, a projected direction of the user'stouch, eyeball, etc., detected by an image sensor, an eye tracing deviceor an infrared sensor, and is not limited to a pointing behavior of auser image captured by a camera. The second information capturing device22 (for example, an external object positioning device) is used forexternal object identification and positioning, and may also be used fornetwork communication device positioning of the object, for example,Bluetooth transmitter and receiver to identify objects and positions,and is not limited to a pointing behavior of a user image captured by acamera.

In an embodiment, the first information capturing device 21 and thesecond information capturing device 22 respectively include a lens andan image sensor, where the lens may be composed of a plurality ofconcave-convex lenses, and an actuator such as a stepper motor or avoice coil motor may be adapted to change a relative position betweenthe lenses, so that a focal length of the lens is changed, and thecaptured object may be imaged on the image sensor. The image sensor isconfigured with a Charge Coupled Device (CCD), a ComplementaryMetal-Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) or other types of photosensing device,and is adapted to sense the light intensity entering the lens, so as tocapture the image signal to generate and output an image. In theembodiment, the first information capturing device 21 is used forcapturing an internal image including the users viewing the transparentdisplay 23, and the second information capturing device 22 is used forcapturing an external image at another side of the transparent display23 relative to the users. In another embodiment, the first informationcapturing device 21 and the second information capturing device 22 mayalso include a programmable processing unit, a micro-processor, anApplication Specific Integrated Circuits (ASIC), a Programmable LogicDevice (PLD) or other similar circuit device adapted to implement anobject identification function, which is not limited by the disclosure.

The transparent display 23 refers to a display having a certain degreeof light transmittance, and when the user views the transparent display,a background at another side of the display relative to the users may bepresented, for example, a transmission transparent display such as aThin Film Transistor Liquid Crystal Display (TFT-LCD), a fieldsequential color display, an Active Matrix Organic Light EmittingDisplay (AMOLED), an electrowetting display, etc., or a projectiontransparent display. In addition to the transparent display 23 having atransparent display panel adapted to see through and displayinformation, the transparent display 23 may also be integrated with atouch panel adapted to detect touch operations of the users, so as toimplement interactions between the users and the display information.

The storage device 24 may be any type of a fixed or a removable RandomAccess Memory (RAM), a Read-Only Memory (ROM), a flash memory, or asimilar device or a combination of the above devices. In the embodiment,the storage device 24 is used for storing image data captured by thefirst information capturing device 21 and the second informationcapturing device 22, and recording computer programs or instructionsaccessible and executable by the processor 25.

The processor 25 is, for example, a Central Processing Unit (CPU), orother programmable general use or special use microprocessor, a DigitalSignal Processor (DSP), a programmable controller, an ApplicationSpecific Integrated Circuits (ASIC), a Programmable Logic Device (PLD),or another similar device, or a combination of the above devices. Theprocessor 25 is coupled to the first information capturing device 21,the second information capturing device 22, the transparent display 23and the storage device 24, and is, for example, adapted to load programinstructions from the storage device 24 to execute an informationdisplay method suitable for multi-person viewing of an embodiment of thedisclosure. In other embodiments, the information display apparatus 20may further include a communication module used for communicating withan external device, an eye tracing device used for tracing eyeballs ofthe users viewing the transparent display 23, etc., and the types of thedevices are not limited by the embodiment. An embodiment is providedbelow to describe detailed steps of the information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of thedisclosure. Referring to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the method of the embodimentis adapted to the information display apparatus 20 of FIG. 2, and stepsthereof are as follow:

First, the processor 25 detects a plurality of users viewing thetransparent display 23, and calculates a gaze range of each of the usersviewing the transparent display 23 (step S302). The processor 25, forexample, estimates a distance between the user and the transparentdisplay 23 according to an area occupied by the user in the internalimage captured by the first information capturing device 21, andestimates a sight line direction of the user according to positions,sizes or a proportional relationship of the user's face, eyes, etc., inthe internal image. Then, the processor 25 calculates a range that theeyes can clearly identify the objects on the transparent display 23(i.e. the gaze range) by using the above distance between the eyes andthe transparent display 23 according to a central identification angleof a human eye.

In detail, a horizontal angle of human eye's visual range is about 124°,a vertical angle thereof is about 120°, and a comprehensive viewingangle of the two eyes is about 170°. Photoreceptor cells of the humaneye are not evenly distributed and are denser at the center of theconcave than other portions. A central identification angle of a humaneye would be an angle, for example, 0°-30°, when facing the front side,where the human eyes may clearly see objects' presence and identify theobjects within such range, and an angle of 30° and beyond is used forthe light detection. Therefore, assuming that a distance between thehuman eye and the transparent display 23 is M, a central identificationangle of a human eye is 15°, a gaze range A thereof may be obtainedaccording to a following equation:

d=M×tan 15°

A=π×d ²

After obtaining the gaze range of each of the users on the transparentdisplay 23, the processor 25 calculates an intersection range of thegaze ranges (step S304), and determines whether a ratio of theintersection range to the gaze ranges exceeds a preset intersectionratio (step S306). In an embodiment, the processor 25 divides theintersection range by a union range of the gaze ranges to obtain theratio of the intersection range to the gaze ranges, where the presetintersection ratio is, for example, a ratio of 70% or other ratiosgreater than 60%.

If the ratio of the intersection range to the gaze ranges does notexceed the preset intersection ratio, it is deduced that multiple peopleare respectively viewing different objects, and now the processor 25displays object information of the objects appeared in the gaze rangeaccording to each of the gaze ranges (step S308). In an embodiment, theprocessor 25 may identify the objects appeared in the gaze ranges toobtain the object information, and display the object informationindividually in or around the corresponding gaze range.

If the ratio of the intersection range to the gaze ranges exceeds thepreset intersection ratio, it is deduced that multiple people areviewing the same one or a plurality of objects, and now the processor 25displays object information of the objects appeared in the gaze rangeaccording to the intersection range (step S310). In an embodiment, theprocessor 25 may identify the objects appeared in the gaze ranges toobtain the object information, and integrate the object information fordisplaying in or around the intersection range.

Based on the above, the method may determine whether multiple people areviewing the same object to properly integrate the object information anddisplay the object information in or around the intersection rangeadapted to be viewed by multiple people, and accordingly avoidinginformation disorder that may cause the user to misread and confuse theuser.

In an embodiment, when the information display apparatus 20 determinesthat the ratio of the intersection range to the gaze ranges exceeds thepreset intersection ratio, the information display apparatus 20 mayfurther identify the type of the object to determine whether to displaythe object information in combination.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of thedisclosure. Referring to FIG. 2 and FIG. 4, the method of the embodimentis adapted to the information display apparatus 20 of FIG. 2, and stepsof the method are as follows:

First, the processor 25 detects a plurality of users viewing thetransparent display 23, and calculates a gaze range of each of the usersviewing the transparent display 23 (step S402), and then calculates anintersection range of the gaze ranges (step S404), and determineswhether a ratio of the intersection range to the gaze ranges exceeds apreset intersection ratio (step S406). If the ratio of the intersectionrange to the gaze ranges does not exceed the preset intersection ratio,the processor 25 displays object information of objects appeared in thegaze range according to each of the gaze ranges (step S408). The abovesteps S402-S408 are the same or similar to the steps S302-S308 of theaforementioned embodiment, and details thereof are not repeated.

In the embodiment, if the ratio of the intersection range to the gazeranges exceeds the preset intersection ratio, the processor 25identifies each of the objects appeared in the gaze range to obtain theobject information (step S410), and determines whether the objectsbelong to a same category according to the object information (stepS412).

If the objects belong to the same category, the processor 25 displaysthe object information of the objects in combination in or around theintersection range (step S414). In an embodiment, the processor 25, forexample, identifies shapes (for example, contours or regions) of theobjects to generate physical ranges that may respectively cover theshapes of the objects, such that when the object information isdisplayed, the object information of the objects is kept away fromjunction ranges of the physical ranges, and is displayed in or aroundthe intersection range of the gaze ranges. The physical ranges are, forexample, minimum rectangles adapted to cover the shapes of the objects,though the disclosure is not limited thereto.

Conversely, if the objects do not belong to the same category, theprocessor individually displays the object information of the objects inor around the corresponding gaze range (step S416). In an embodiment,the processor 25 may also identifies shapes of the objects to generatephysical ranges that may respectively cover the objects, such that whenthe object information is displayed, the object information of theobjects is kept away from junction ranges of the physical ranges andkept away from the intersection range of the gazing ranges, and isdisplayed in or around the corresponding gaze range.

In an embodiment, when the information display apparatus 20 displays theobject information, the information display apparatus 20 may determinepositions and method of displaying the object information according tothe shapes of the objects viewed by the users, such that the displayedobject information is adapted to be viewed by the users.

FIG. 5A is a flowchart illustrating an information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of thedisclosure. Referring to FIG. 2 and FIG. 5A, the method of theembodiment is adapted to the information display apparatus 20 of FIG. 2,and steps of the method are as follows:

First, the processor 25 detects a plurality of users viewing thetransparent display 23, and calculates a gaze range of each of the usersviewing the transparent display 23 (step S502), and then calculates anintersection range of the gaze ranges (step S504), and determineswhether a ratio of the intersection range to the gaze ranges exceeds apreset intersection ratio (step S506). If the ratio of the intersectionrange to the gaze ranges does not exceed the preset intersection ratio,the processor 25 displays object information of objects appeared in thegaze range according to each of the gaze ranges (step S508). The abovesteps S502-S508 are the same or similar to the steps S302-S308 of theaforementioned embodiment, and details thereof are not repeated.

In the embodiment, if the ratio of the intersection range to the gazeranges exceeds the preset intersection ratio, the processor 25calculates a width-height ratio of a shape of the each of the objects(step S510), and compares the width-height ratio with a presetwidth-height ratio (step S512), where the width-height ratio is, forexample, any number equal to 1 or greater than 1. In detail, theprocessor 25, for example, identifies the shape (for example, a contouror a region) of the object to generate a physical range that may coverthe shape of the object viewed by multiple people, and then calculates aratio of a width to a height of the physical range to obtain thewidth-height ratio.

If the width-height ratio is greater than or equal to the presetwidth-height ratio, it represents that the shape of the object belongsto a broad-short type, and now the processor 25 may display the objectinformation of the object in an upper region or a lower region of theintersection range (step S514), so as to avoid a situation that theobject information exceeds a display range of the transparent display23.

If the width-height ratio is less than the preset width-height ratio, itrepresents that the shape of the object belongs to a thin-tall type, andnow the processor 25 may display the object information of the object ina left region or a right region of the intersection range (step S516),so as to avoid the situation that the object information exceeds thedisplay range of the transparent display 23.

For example, FIG. 5B and FIG. 5C are examples of the information displaymethod suitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment ofthe disclosure. Referring to FIG. 5B, when a user 52 and a user 54simultaneously view an object 56 located at another side relative to theusers through the transparent display 50, the transparent display 50 mayidentify relative positions respectively between the users 52, 54 andthe object 56, so as to determine gaze ranges 52 g and 54 g of the user52 and the user 54 viewing the transparent display 50, and a physicalrange 56 f of a shape of the object 56 viewed by the two users. Bycomparing a width-height ratio of the physical range 56 f with thepreset width-height ratio, it is discovered that the physical range 56 fbelongs to the broad-short type, and now the transparent display 50 maydisplay object information 56 i of the object 56 in an upper region (ora lower region) of the intersection range.

Then, referring to FIG. 5C, when the user 52 and the user 54simultaneously view an object 58 located at another side relative to theusers through the transparent display 50, the transparent display 50 mayidentify relative positions respectively between the users 52, 54 andthe object 58, so as to determine gaze ranges 52 g and 54 g of the user52 and the user 54 viewing the transparent display 50, and a physicalrange 58 f of a shape of the object 58 viewed by the two users. Bycomparing a width-height ratio of the physical range 58 f with thepreset width-height ratio, it is discovered that the physical range 58 fbelongs to the thin-tall type, and now the transparent display 50 maydisplay object information 58 i of the object 58 in the left region (orthe right region) of the intersection range.

In an embodiment, when the information display apparatus 20 displays theobject information, the information display apparatus 20, for example,determines whether to combine the object information according to acategory of the object, and selects to display the object information inthe intersection range or display the object information by keeping awayfrom the intersection range, such that the displayed object informationis adapted to be viewed by multiple people.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of thedisclosure. Referring to FIG. 2 and FIG. 6, the method of the embodimentis adapted to the information display apparatus 20 of FIG. 2, and stepsthereof are as follows:

First, the processor 25 detects a plurality of users viewing thetransparent display 23, and calculates a gaze range of each of the usersviewing the transparent display 23 (step S602), and identifies shapes ofthe objects appeared in the gaze ranges to generate physical rangesadapted to respectively cover the shapes of the objects (step S604). Theabove physical range is, for example, a minimum rectangle adapted tocover the shape of the object, though the disclosure is not limitedthereto.

Then, the processor 25 calculates an intersection range of the gazeranges of the users (step S606), and determines whether a ratio of theintersection range to the gaze ranges exceeds a preset intersectionratio (step S608). The above steps S602-S608 are the same or similar tothe steps S302-S308 of the aforementioned embodiment, and detailsthereof are not repeated.

In the embodiment, if the ratio of the intersection range to the gazeranges does not exceed the preset intersection ratio, the processor 25keeps away from the physical ranges and keeps away from the intersectionrange of the gaze ranges to individually display the object informationof the objects in the corresponding gaze ranges (step S610).

If the ratio of the intersection range to the gaze ranges exceeds thepreset intersection ratio, the processor 25 determines whether theobjects belong to a same category according to the object informationobtained through previous identification of the objects (step S612). Ifthe objects belong to the same category, the processor 25 keeps awayfrom a junction range of the physical ranges to display the objectinformation of the objects in the intersection range of the gaze ranges(step S614). Conversely, if the objects belong to different categories,the processor 25 keeps away from the junction range of the physicalranges and keeps away from the intersection range of the gaze ranges toindividually display the object information of the objects in thecorresponding gaze ranges (step S616).

For example, FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B are examples of the information displaymethod suitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment ofthe disclosure. Referring to FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B, when a user 72 and auser 74 simultaneously view objects 76, 78 located at another siderelative to the users through the transparent display 70, thetransparent display 70 may identify relative positions respectivelybetween the users 72, 74 and the objects 76, 78, so as to determine gazeranges 72 g and 74 g of the user 72 and the user 74 viewing thetransparent display 70, and physical ranges 76 f, 78 f of shapes of theobjects 76, 78 viewed by the two users. In FIG. 7A, the gaze ranges 72 gand 74 g of the user 72 and the user 74 are not intersected, and now thetransparent display 70 may keep away from the physical ranges 76 f and78 f to individually display object information 76 i, 78 i of theobjects 76, 78 in the corresponding gaze ranges 72 g and 74 g. In FIG.7B, the gaze ranges 72 g and 74 g of the user 72 and the user 74 areintersected, and a ratio thereof exceeds the preset intersection ratio,and now the transparent display 70 confirms that the objects 76, 78belong to the same category, and keeps away from a junction range of thephysical ranges 76 f, 78 f to display the object information 79 i of theobjects 76, 78 in the intersection range of the gaze ranges 72 g and 74g.

FIG. 8A to FIG. 8C are examples of the information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of thedisclosure. Referring to FIG. 8A to FIG. 8C, when a user 82 and a user84 respectively view objects 86, 88 located at another side relative tothe users through the transparent display 80, the transparent display 80may identify relative positions respectively between the users 82, 84and the objects 86, 88, so as to determine gaze ranges 82 g and 84 g ofthe user 82 and the user 84 viewing the transparent display 80, andphysical ranges 86 f, 88 f of shapes of the objects 86, 88 viewed by thetwo users.

In FIG. 8A, a distance between the objects 86, 88 is relatively far, andnow the gaze ranges 82 g and 84 g of the user 82 and the user 84 are notintersected, and the transparent display 80 may keep away from thephysical ranges 86 f and 88 f to individually display object information86 i, 88 i of the objects 86, 88 in the corresponding gaze ranges 82 gand 84 g. In FIG. 8B, the objects 86, 88 start to be intersected, andnow the gaze ranges 82 g and 84 g of the user 82 and the user 84 areintersected, and an intersection ratio thereof exceeds the presetintersection ratio, and by confirming that the objects 86, 88 belong todifferent categories, the object information 86 i, 88 i of the objects86, 88 are kept away from a junction range of the physical ranges 86 f,88 f and kept away from the intersection range of the gaze ranges 82 g,84 g, and are individually displayed in the corresponding gaze ranges 82g, 84 g. In FIG. 8C, the objects 86, 88 have intersected, and now thegaze ranges 82 g and 84 g of the user 82 and the user 84 are crossed andintersected, and an intersection ratio thereof also exceeds the presetintersection ratio. Now, the transparent display 80 may also confirmthat the objects 86, 88 belong to different categories, so that thetransparent display 80 keeps away from the junction range of thephysical ranges 86 f, 88 f and keeps away from the intersection range ofthe gaze ranges 82 g, 84 g to individually display the objectinformation 86 i, 88 i of the objects 86, 88 in the corresponding gazeranges 82 g and 84 g.

In an embodiment, when the information display apparatus 20 is tointeract with an object appeared in the transparent display 23, if thegaze ranges of a plurality of users viewing the object are intersected,and a ratio of the intersection range exceeds the preset intersectionratio, the information display apparatus 20 may determine whether afirst interactive display region intended to implement a firstinteraction with the object is located in the intersection range. If thefirst interactive display region is located in the intersection range,the information display apparatus 20 may display interaction informationof the first interaction in the first interactive display region.Conversely, if the first interactive display region is not located inthe intersection range, the information display apparatus 20 may displayinteraction information of a second interaction performed to the objectin the first interactive display region. In brief, if the informationdisplay apparatus 20 discovers that the information displayed forimplementing interaction with the object is not in the intersectionrange of the gaze ranges of the users, it may be changed to display theinteraction information of the second interaction in the intersectionrange of the gaze ranges of the users, such that the multiple people mayview correct interaction information.

For example, when two users view a glass cup on a table through thetransparent display 23 from different angles, sight lines of the twousers are, for example, intersected on a cup body. Now, if thetransparent display 23 is to display an animation of inserting a strawinto the glass cup, since a region intended to display the interactioninformation (inserting the straw) is located at a cup rim, and is notlocated at the intersection of the sight lines of the users, to displaythe animation at such region may probably result in a fact that theusers view an error information (for example, the straw is insertedoutside the cup). Now, the transparent display 23 may, for example,change the animation to be displayed into bubbling, and the bubblinganimation may be located at the intersection of the sight lines of theusers, such that the users may view the correct animation to continueperforming interaction with the transparent display 23.

In an embodiment, when the information display apparatus 20 the objectinformation in combination, the information display apparatus 20, forexample, determines a display position and a display method of theobject information according to shapes of the objects and a proportionof the object information to be displayed.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of thedisclosure. Referring to FIG. 2 and FIG. 9, the method of the embodimentis adapted to the information display apparatus 20 of FIG. 2, and afterthe step S310 of FIG. 3, the steps are as follows:

First, the processor 25 identifies a shape of the object to calculate awidth-height ratio of the shape of the object (step S902). The processor25, for example, identifies the shape (for example, a contour or aregion) of the object to generate a physical range that may cover theshape of the object viewed by multiple people, and then calculates aratio of a width to a height of the physical range to obtain thewidth-height ratio.

Then, the processor 25 calculates an information proportion of theobject information of the objects displayed in combination (step S904).The object information is, for example, a text or a picture, and theinformation proportion is, for example, a ratio of a width to a heightof a text display region, or a ratio of a width to a height of thepicture, which is determined according to the type of the objectinformation, and is not limited by the disclosure.

Then, the processor 25 may compare the calculated width-height ratiowith the preset width-height ratio, and compare the calculatedinformation proportion with a preset information proportion to determinea region and method for displaying the preset information in theintersection range.

In detail, the processor 25, for example, determines whether thecalculated width-height ratio is greater than or equal to the presetwidth-height ratio (step S906). The preset width-height ratio is, forexample, a value between 1.5 and 2, which is not limited by thedisclosure.

If the calculated width-height ratio is greater than or equal to thepreset width-height ratio, the processor 25 further determines whetherthe information proportion is greater than or equal to the presetinformation proportion (step S908). The preset information proportionis, for example, a value between 1 and 1.2, which is not limited by thedisclosure.

If the information proportion is greater than or equal to the presetinformation proportion, the processor 25 displays the object informationin an upper region or a lower region of the intersection range of thegaze ranges of the users, and dynamically displays the objectinformation (step S910). Conversely, if the information proportion isnot greater than the preset information proportion, the processor 25displays the object information in the upper region or the lower regionof the intersection range (step S912). The dynamic display is, forexample, to segment the object information into a plurality of segmentsfor segmentally displaying according to the number of words or thelength, for example, to display about 3-5 words each time.

On the other hand, in step S916, if the calculated width-height ratio isnot greater than the preset width-height ratio, the processor 25 furtherdetermines whether the information proportion is greater than or equalto the preset information proportion (step S916). The preset informationproportion is, for example, a value between 1 and 1.2, which is notlimited by the disclosure.

If the information proportion is greater than or equal to the presetinformation proportion, the processor 25 displays the object informationin left region or a right region of the intersection range, anddynamically displays the object information (step S918). Conversely, ifthe information proportion is not greater than the preset informationproportion, the processor 25 displays the object information in the leftregion or the right region of the intersection range (step S920).

According to the above method, the position and method for displayingthe object information may be suitably adjusted according to differentshapes of the objects and different information proportions, so that thedisplayed object information is suitable for being viewed by multiplepeople.

In an embodiment, the information display apparatus 20 may calculate avisual range of the user viewing the transparent display 23, anddetermine whether to divide the transparent display 23 to performinformation display according to an area ratio of the visual range tothe whole transparent display 23.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of thedisclosure. Referring to FIG. 2 and FIG. 10, the method of theembodiment is adapted to the information display apparatus 20 of FIG. 2,and the steps thereof are as follows:

First, the processor 25 calculates a visual range of each of the usersviewing the transparent display 23 for a plurality of users viewing thetransparent display 23 (step S1002). The above visual range may bedetermined by the visual angle of a human eye, and as described above,the horizontal angle of human eye's visual angle is about 124°, thevertical angle thereof is about 120°, and the comprehensive viewingangle of the two eyes is about 170°. Similar to the calculation methodof the aforementioned gaze ranges, after obtaining the distance betweenthe human eye and the transparent display 23, a visual range that thehuman eye views the transparent display 23 may be calculated accordingto the above human eye visual angle.

Then, the processor 25 determines whether an area ratio of the visualranges to the transparent display 23 is smaller than a preset visualratio (step S1004). The above preset visual ratio is, for example, anynumber between 0.6 and 0.9, which is not limited by the disclosure.

If the area ratio of the visual ranges is smaller than the preset visualratio, it represents that the users probably cannot view a part of thetransparent display 23, and now the processor 25 divides the transparentdisplay 23 into a plurality of display regions according to the visualranges of the users (step S1006), and calculates the intersection rangeof the gaze ranges of the users viewing such display region for each ofthe display regions (step S1008), so as to implement the subsequentinformation display.

On the other hand, if the area ratio of the visual ranges is not smallerthan the preset visual ratio, it represents that the users may view mostof the transparent display 23, and now the processor 25 does not dividethe transparent display 23, and maintains to calculate the intersectionrange according to the gaze ranges of all of the users appeared in thetransparent display 23 (step S1010).

After the intersection range is calculated, the processor 25 determineswhether a ratio of the intersection range to the gaze ranges exceeds apreset intersection ratio (step S1012). If yes, the processor 25displays the object information of the objects appeared in the gazerange according to the intersection range (step S1016). Conversely, theprocessor 25 displays the object information of objects appeared in thegaze range according to each of the gaze ranges (step S1014).

For example, FIG. 11 is an example of the information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of thedisclosure. Referring to FIG. 11, when users 112, 114, 116simultaneously view the objects located at another side of the usersthrough the transparent display 110, by determining the distancesbetween the users 112, 114, 116 and the transparent display 110 andviewing directions of the eyes of the users viewing the objects, visualranges 112 v, 114 v, 116 v of the users 112, 114, 116 viewing thetransparent display 110 are determined. An area ratio of the visualranges 112 v, 114 v of the users 112, 114 and the transparent display110 is smaller than a preset visual ratio, and the information displayapparatus 20 may divide the transparent display 110 into, for example, 4regions, and perform sight line intersection calculation and informationdisplay for the users in each of the users. For example, the informationdisplay apparatus 20 may perform sight line intersection calculation andinformation display for the users 112, 114 with the visual ranges 112 vand 114 v falling to a lower left corner of the transparent display 110,and perform information display for the user 116 with the visual range116 v falling to an upper right corner of the transparent display 110.

In an embodiment, the processor 25 may, for example, calculate the gazeranges and perform grouping for a plurality of users viewing thetransparent display 23, and divide the transparent display 23 into aplurality of display regions according to a grouping result, andcalculate the gaze ranges and the intersection range for the users of asame group.

For example, FIG. 12 is an example of the information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to an embodiment of thedisclosure. Referring to FIG. 12, when users 122, 124, 126, 128simultaneously view the objects located at another side of the usersthrough the transparent display 120, the transparent display 120 mayidentify the distances between the users 122, 124, 126, 128 and thetransparent display 120, so as to calculate gaze ranges 122 g, 124 g,126 g, 128 g of the users 122, 124, 126, 128. According to adistribution of the gaze ranges 122 g, 124 g, 126 g, 128 g, theinformation display apparatus 20 may group the gaze ranges 124 g, 126 gclose to each other into one group, and take the stray gaze ranges 122g, 128 g as another group. According to the grouping result, theinformation display apparatus 20 may divide the transparent display 120into four regions. As more people view the left side of the transparentdisplay 120, a width of the upper left region and the lower left regiondivided by the information display apparatus 20 may be greater than awidth of the upper right region and the lower right region. After thegrouping is determined, the information display apparatus 20 maycalculate the gaze ranges and the intersection range for the users ofthe same group, and accordingly display the object information of theobjects appeared in the gaze ranges in the corresponding display region.

The embodiments of the disclosure provide the information display methodand information display apparatus suitable for multi-person viewing, andby calculating the gaze ranges and/or intersection range of a pluralityof users viewing the transparent display, the same object viewed by theusers is found, and the object information is suitably displayed in oraround the gaze ranges or the intersection range, such that while theinformation display amount is reduced, the users are ensured to view thecorrect object information. Moreover, in an embodiment of thedisclosure, by combining the techniques such as object categoryidentification, object shape identification, display information shapeidentification, user visual range identification, etc., the informationdisplayed on the transparent display is adapted to be viewed by multipleusers.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that variousmodifications and variations can be made to the structure of thedisclosure without departing from the scope or spirit of the disclosure.In view of the foregoing, it is intended that the disclosure covermodifications and variations of this disclosure provided they fallwithin the scope of the following claims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. An information display method suitable formulti-person viewing, adapted to an electronic apparatus having atransparent display and a processor, and the information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing comprising: detecting a plurality ofusers viewing the transparent display, and calculating a gaze range ofeach of the users viewing the transparent display; calculating anintersection range of the gaze ranges of the users, and determiningwhether a ratio of the intersection range to the gaze ranges exceeds apreset intersection ratio; if the ratio of the intersection range to thegaze ranges does not exceed the preset intersection ratio, displayingobject information of objects appeared in the gaze range according toeach of the gaze ranges; and if the ratio of the intersection range tothe gaze ranges exceeds the preset intersection ratio, displaying theobject information of the objects appeared in the gaze range accordingto the intersection range.
 2. The information display method suitablefor multi-person viewing according to claim 1, wherein the step ofdisplaying the object information of the objects appeared in the gazerange according to the intersection range comprises: identifying each ofthe objects appeared in the gaze range to obtain the object information,and determining whether the objects belong to a same category accordingto the object information; if the objects belong to the same category,displaying the object information of the objects in combination in oraround the intersection range; and if the objects do not belong to thesame category, displaying the object information of the objectsindividually in or around the corresponding gaze range.
 3. Theinformation display method suitable for multi-person viewing accordingto claim 2, wherein the step of displaying the object information of theobjects in combination in or around the intersection range comprises:identifying a shape of each of the objects to calculate a width-heightratio of the shape of the object, and comparing the width-height ratiowith a preset width-height ratio; if the width-height ratio is greaterthan or equal to the preset width-height ratio, displaying the objectinformation of the object in an upper region or a lower region of theintersection range; and if the width-height ratio is smaller than thepreset width-height ratio, displaying the object information of theobject in a left region or a right region of the intersection range. 4.The information display method suitable for multi-person viewingaccording to claim 2, wherein the step of displaying the objectinformation of the objects in combination in or around the intersectionrange comprises: identifying shapes of the objects to generate aplurality of physical ranges respectively covering the shapes of theobjects; and keeping away from a junction range of the physical rangesto display the object information of the objects in or around theintersection range of the gaze ranges.
 5. The information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to claim 2, wherein the stepof displaying the object information of the objects individually in oraround the corresponding gaze range comprises: identifying shapes of theobjects to generate a plurality of physical ranges respectively coveringthe shapes of the objects; and keeping away from a junction range of thephysical ranges and keeping away from the intersection range of the gazeranges to display the object information of the objects individually inor around the corresponding gaze range.
 6. The information displaymethod suitable for multi-person viewing according to claim 2, whereinthe step of displaying the object information of the objects incombination in or around the intersection range comprises: determiningwhether a first interactive display region intended to implement a firstinteraction with the object is located in the intersection range; if thefirst interactive display region is located in the intersection range,displaying interaction information of the first interaction in the firstinteractive display region; and if the first interactive display regionis not located in the intersection range, displaying interactioninformation of a second interaction performed to the object in a secondinteractive display region.
 7. The information display method suitablefor multi-person viewing according to claim 2, wherein the step ofdisplaying the object information of the objects in combination in oraround the intersection range comprises: identifying a shape of each ofthe objects to calculate a width-height ratio of the shape of theobject; calculating an information proportion of the object informationof the object displayed in combination; comparing the width-height ratiowith a preset width-height ratio, and comparing the informationproportion with a preset information proportion to determine a regionand a method for displaying preset information in the intersectionrange.
 8. The information display method suitable for multi-personviewing according to claim 7, wherein the step of comparing thewidth-height ratio with the preset width-height ratio, and comparing theinformation proportion with the preset information proportion todetermine the region and the method for displaying the presetinformation in the intersection range comprises: if the width-heightratio is greater than or equal to the preset width-height ratio, and theinformation proportion is greater than or equal to the presetinformation proportion, displaying the object information in an upperregion or a lower region of the intersection range, and dynamicallydisplaying the object information; if the width-height ratio is greaterthan or equal to the preset width-height ratio, and the informationproportion is smaller than the preset information proportion, displayingthe object information in the upper region or the lower region of theintersection range; if the width-height ratio is smaller than the presetwidth-height ratio, and the information proportion is smaller than thepreset information proportion, displaying the object information in aleft region or a right region of the intersection range; and if thewidth-height ratio is smaller than the preset width-height ratio, andthe information proportion is greater than or equal to the presetinformation proportion, displaying the object information in the leftregion or the right region of the intersection range, and dynamicallydisplaying the object information.
 9. The information display methodsuitable for multi-person viewing according to claim 1, wherein the stepof detecting the plurality of users viewing the transparent displayfurther comprises: calculating a visual range of each of the usersviewing the transparent display, and determining whether an area ratioof the visual range to the transparent display is smaller than a presetvisual ratio; if the area ratio of the visual range is smaller than thepreset visual ratio, dividing the transparent display into a pluralityof display regions according to the visual ranges of the users, andcalculating the gaze ranges and the intersection range of the users withthe visual ranges falling within the same display region to display theobject information of the objects appeared in the gaze range in thedisplay region; and if the area ratio of the visual range is not smallerthan the preset visual ratio, not to divide the display region.
 10. Theinformation display method suitable for multi-person viewing accordingto claim 1, wherein after the step of calculating the gaze range of eachof the users viewing the transparent display, the method furthercomprises: grouping the gaze ranges, and dividing the transparentdisplay into a plurality of display regions according to a groupingresult, and calculating the gaze ranges and the intersection range forthe users of a same group to display the object information of theobjects appeared in the gaze range in the corresponding display region.11. An information display apparatus, comprising: a transparent display;a first information capturing device, capturing internal userinformation of users viewing the transparent display; a secondinformation capturing device, capturing external object information atanother side of the transparent display relative to the users; and aprocessor, coupled to the transparent display, the first informationcapturing device and the second information capturing device, andconfigured to load and execute a plurality of program instructions to:detect the users in the internal user information, and calculate a gazerange of each of the users viewing the transparent display; calculate anintersection range of the gaze ranges of the users, and determinewhether a ratio of the intersection range to the gaze ranges exceeds apreset intersection ratio; if the ratio of the intersection range to thegaze ranges does not exceed the preset intersection ratio, displayobject information of objects appeared in the gaze range according toeach of the gaze ranges; and if the ratio of the intersection rage tothe gaze ranges exceeds the preset intersection ratio, display theobject information of the objects appeared in the gaze range accordingto the intersection range.
 12. The information display apparatusaccording to claim 11, wherein the processor comprises: identifying eachof the objects appeared in the gaze range to obtain the objectinformation, and determining whether the objects belong to a samecategory according to the object information; if the objects belong tothe same category, displaying the object information of the objects incombination in or around the intersection range; and if the objects donot belong to the same category, displaying the object information ofthe objects individually in or around the corresponding gaze range. 13.The information display apparatus according to claim 12, wherein theprocessor comprises: identifying a shape of each of the objects tocalculate a width-height ratio of the shape of the object, and comparingthe width-height ratio with a preset width-height ratio; if thewidth-height ratio is greater than or equal to the preset width-heightratio, displaying the object information of the object in an upperregion or a lower region of the intersection range; and if thewidth-height ratio is smaller than the preset width-height ratio,displaying the object information of the object in a left region or aright region of the intersection range.
 14. The information displayapparatus according to claim 12, wherein the processor comprises:identifying shapes of the objects to generate a plurality of physicalranges respectively covering the shapes of the objects; and keeping awayfrom a junction range of the physical ranges to display the objectinformation of the objects in or around the intersection range of thegaze ranges.
 15. The information display apparatus according to claim12, wherein the processor comprises: identifying shapes of the objectsto generate a plurality of physical ranges respectively covering theshapes of the objects; and keeping away from a junction range of thephysical ranges and keeping away from the intersection range of the gazeranges to display the object information of the objects individually inor around the corresponding gaze range.
 16. The information displayapparatus according to claim 12, wherein the processor comprises:determining whether a first interactive display region intended toimplement a first interaction with the object is located in theintersection range; if the first interactive display region is locatedin the intersection range, displaying interaction information of thefirst interaction in the first interactive display region; and if thefirst interactive display region is not located in the intersectionrange, displaying interaction information of a second interactionperformed to the object in a second interactive display region.
 17. Theinformation display apparatus according to claim 12, wherein theprocessor comprises: identifying a shape of each of the objects tocalculate a width-height ratio of the shape of the object; calculatingan information proportion of the object information of the objectdisplayed in combination; comparing the width-height ratio with a presetwidth-height ratio, and comparing the information proportion with apreset information proportion to determine a region and a method fordisplaying preset information in the intersection range.
 18. Theinformation display apparatus according to claim 17, wherein theprocessor comprises: if the width-height ratio is greater than or equalto the preset width-height ratio, and the information proportion isgreater than or equal to the preset information proportion, displayingthe object information in an upper region or a lower region of theintersection range, and dynamically displaying the object information;if the width-height ratio is greater than or equal to the presetwidth-height ratio, and the information proportion is smaller than thepreset information proportion, displaying the object information in theupper region or the lower region of the intersection range; if thewidth-height ratio is smaller than the preset width-height ratio, andthe information proportion is smaller than the preset informationproportion, displaying the object information in a left region or aright region of the intersection range; and if the width-height ratio issmaller than the preset width-height ratio, and the informationproportion is greater than or equal to the preset informationproportion, displaying the object information in the left region or theright region of the intersection range, and dynamically displaying theobject information.
 19. The information display apparatus according toclaim 11, wherein the processor further comprises: calculating a visualrange of each of the users viewing the transparent display, anddetermining whether an area ratio of the visual range to the transparentdisplay is smaller than a preset visual ratio; if the area ratio of thevisual range is smaller than the preset visual ratio, dividing thetransparent display into a plurality of display regions according to thevisual ranges of the users, and calculating the gaze ranges and theintersection range of the users with the visual ranges falling withinthe same display region to display the object information of the objectsappeared in the gaze range in the display region; and if the area ratioof the visual range is not smaller than the preset visual ratio, not todivide the display region.
 20. The information display apparatusaccording to claim 11, wherein the processor further comprises: groupingthe gaze ranges, and dividing the transparent display into a pluralityof display regions according to a grouping result, and calculating thegaze ranges and the intersection range for the users of a same group todisplay the object information of the objects appeared in the gaze rangein the corresponding display region.